"Of David.
1 To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, in you I trust;
let me not be put to shame;
let not my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;
they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
4 Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
5 Lead me in your truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all the day long.
6 Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
7 Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me,
for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!
8 Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
11 For your name's sake, O Lord,
pardon my guilt, for it is great.
12 Who is the man who fears the Lord?
Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
13 His soul shall abide in well-being,
and his offspring shall inherit the land.
14 The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.
15 My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
16 Turn to me and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
bring me out of my distresses.
18 Consider my affliction and my trouble,
and forgive all my sins.
19 Consider how many are my foes,
and with what violent hatred they hate me.
20 Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!
Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for you.
22 Redeem Israel, O God,
out of all his troubles."
Psalm 25
The Psalm, it will be noted, divides into three sections, 1-7, 8-14 and 15-22. The first and third sections are impassioned petitions, while the second is filled with confidence, in communion with God. The fact that, even in this central section, there comes the sudden, piercing, arrow-like consciousness of that conviction (11) proves that it is of the devil. So often in our experience it is in the most sacred intimacy of personal communion with God that the devil's darts of accusation and bludgeoning come to distress us and appal our spirits. Well might Paul speak of 'the fiery darts of the wicked'. The questions, then, that arise are: how to discern his working, and how to deal with him? As to the first of these, this may be said: when God convicts, the effect is to draw us to Him for cleansing and renewal and restoration of fellowship. When Satan convicts, however, it has the effect of driving us in on ourselves more and more, and into despair, as if nothing could be done now. When dejection and darkness grip the soul making us want to give up, we may be sure that the devil is at work. The way to deal with this and with him is to refuse his accusations, and in the name of Christ dispute his right to torment us, taking a stand on the victory of the Saviour and claiming it as our own, saying 'It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth?' This is the significance of the central section of the Psalm: David is in touch with the unseen world of grace, and it is that unseen world of grace that we must take with us into the world of conflict. And the steadfast fix- ing of our spiritual eyes on the reality of that unseen world with its promises and assurances is what will finally bear us through to God's victory and His peace.